The Greenhouse Hamburger
- Meat production contributes 14 to 22 percent of the CO2 equivalent greenhouse gases.
- Half a pound of asparagus produces 1.2 ounces of CO2 equivalent greenhouse gases while it's 3.6 to 6.8 pounds.
- One pound of beef protein requires ten pounds of plant protein.
- Improving waste management and farming practices would lower the carbon footprint from beef production. Methane capturing systems would also help, but both of these options are too expensive.
- Individuals can make a difference by making smart choices in their diet, such as eating locally. People can also choose to eat less meat in general, particularly beef.
The author is tries to explain just how much the production of beef can contribute to the increase of greenhouse gases. He talks about how you can compare gases by measuring their equivalency in CO2. Vegetables only produce ounces of CO2 while beef production can contribute pounds of CO2. Not even other meats even come close to the amount of greenhouse gases beef produces. The Americas and Australia consume a much higher amount of beef annually, which can be lowered with individual efforts.
After seeing these infographics, I think any person would understand why our beef consumption needs to be lowered significantly. Very few countries consume the amount of beef we do, because the amount we do is completely unreasonable. Having beef in our diets is not as important as some people see it and we should be actively finding alternatives in place of beef. I knew that basically everything we produce has some greenhouse gas emissions, but I didn't realize how much more producing beef compares to even something like pork.